Letters to the Editor: Aug. 7, 2014

Who’s to blame?

Donald Smith (Commentary, Letters, “No war,” July 16, Oklahoma Gazette) wishes to remind those of us with “short memories” that the United States sent troops into Iraq at the order of George W. Bush. I wish to refresh his memory and ask him if he remembers 9/11.

Does he remember which Middle Eastern countries were used to train for and plan this unwarranted attack on the United States that cost over 3,000 lives?

I also wish to remind him that all of our intelligence information, as well of that of our European allies, indicated that Iraq did have weapons of mass destruction. (In fact, they did have chemical weapons that they used on their own people.) Regardless, the Democrats requested to have a second vote taken regarding congressional approval of invading Iraq. Whereas a handful of them had voted against doing so to begin with, they now wished to unanimously approve of the measure, which they did.

Only in hindsight did some fair-weather individuals start blaming Bush for the invasion. The worst political decision seems to be the one that Obama has made to prematurely withdraw too many troops. This has resulted in relinquishing all of our hard-earned progress, making our efforts and sacrifices to no avail.

— Mickey McVayOklahoma City

Thanks for having courage

I wish to congratulate you in your article “Cartel Crossroads” (News, Ben Felder, July 16, Gazette). It was extremely insightful and with great timing. Unfortunately, the Spanish media (newsprint and radio) in Oklahoma has totally refused to address these issues. From Capitol Hill Main Street to South Western Avenue, they have chosen to ignore this tragedy.

We do experience the impact of the cartels in our state, but you guys are the only ones with enough courage, moral responsibility and common sense willing to talk about it. Once again, congratulations. No wonder you guys are Oklahoma’s No. 1 paper for English and Spanish speakers.

— Willie QuiñonesOklahoma City

Poll results might be skewed

A SoonerPoll commissioned by the seemingly anti-wind organization OK Property Rights Association reports the results their customer expected: “Oklahoma voters believe there is not enough regulation of wind energy development or oversight of wind tax subsidies in the state.” If questions were framed impartially, that survey would have included thousands of Oklahomans who prefer wind turbines and solar panels to an unprecedented 50 percent increase in property-damaging earthquakes since October 2013. It might have included responses from more than 4,000 Oklahomans employed from 2003-2012 in the wind industry, which created $340 million in labor income.

Oklahoma generates more than 3,000 megawatts of wind energy, ranking our state in the top 10, according to the Oklahoma-based Wind Energy Coalition. The industry has the potential to do even better.